


Gentle Finality

by bloodsugar



Series: Love in Hope County? As if! [5]
Category: Far Cry (Video Games), Far Cry 5
Genre: Angst and Feels, Complicated Relationships, Enemies to Lovers, Feelings, M/M, Tattoos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-11
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:33:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22211851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bloodsugar/pseuds/bloodsugar
Summary: The first time Rook hears something about it, he is kidnapped and dragged into another one of John’s crazy confession sessions.
Relationships: Deputy | Judge/Joseph Seed, Male Deputy | Judge/Joseph Seed
Series: Love in Hope County? As if! [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1591975
Comments: 2
Kudos: 35





	Gentle Finality

The first time Rook hears something about it, he is kidnapped and dragged into another one of John’s crazy confession sessions. 

Strapped to a chair in a near-empty room, this time above ground rather than in the bunker, Rook is gagged and looking up at John monologuing. For a man who expects people to tell him his sins, John talks _a lot_.

Rook is, as always, simultaneously unimpressed and considering his exit strategy when John says something that makes Rook’s blood run cold. 

“...and do not think for a second, _Deputy_ , that Joseph’s favoritism of you will continue to extend you courtesies. My people may be hesitant now, but they will remember their purpose. You _will_ atone.” 

Rook wants to ask what the fuck that meant but then there’s loud noises outside, peggies yellling, chaos, and the smell of something burning. 

Next thing Hurk smashes the door down, John is put to sleep with a dart out of nowhere, and Rook is dragged out of there. Rescued, before he can understand what John had been on about. 

Did John know about him and Joseph? How could he though.

Rook decides not to dig deeper and is instead grateful to be rescued still scar free. Pun intended. 

  
  


~ 

  
  


It happens again. 

Jacob radios him one day, his words slow and measured, in his typical tone filled with condescension. 

“You know, Deputy, my plan for you includes your slow, or fast, death and nothing will change that. Joseph’s questionable choices aside.” 

Rook’s heart is still stuck in his throat when Jacob’s hunters drag him off to their boss and he is forced to go through another week of Only You messing with his mind. 

This time when Staci Pratt sneaks him out, Rook remembers Jacob’s words and thinks it is probably a good idea to ask Joseph about it. 

  
  


~

  
  


They don’t radio each other often and with peggy activity happening anywhere but around Rook lately, Rook knows he’s going to have to find a way to visit Joseph instead. 

Unfortunately no opportunity presents itself for days so Rook continues his usual recon and rescue activity around the county. He is hiding in the bushes near a small church in Faith’s region with Grace and Peaches when he sees it for the first time. 

Joseph has come to give a sermon, the sight of him alone making Rook feels twitchy and wanting for something he can not name. Rook sees him step out of the church, followed by a few peggies. 

“Just say the word,” Grace says from where she is crouched next to Rook. “I can take the shot right now.”

Rook grits his teeth and shakes his head no. A couple of months ago, he would have at least agreed to wound Joseph to slow his madness down. Now he can’t think of a reason to give Grace the go ahead. He looks to the church again instead. 

Joseph’s demeanor is changed slightly, the usually pristine and clean looking shirt unbuttoned down all the way to his stomach. Joseph turns at just the right angle and that’s when Rook first _sees_ it through his binoculars, his breath catching. 

No. 

No way. It’s getting dark, he’s far away, he must be seeing things. Rook goes to zoom in but then Joseph is turning away, speaking to his loyal flock, thanking them. Rook can barely hear the words over the ringing in his ears. 

What he does hear is Grace next to him. “What the fuck?” 

Not for the first time since he came to Hope County, Rook wishes he could just disappear into nothing. 

  
  


Later, when they have let Joseph and his followers go for reasons unknown even to Rook, they are back at Fall’s End. After they’ve had a couple of beers, Rook excuses himself to the roof of the Spread Eagle. He sits down and muses over the past six hours. 

Rook really hopes his sight is going bad, but the possibility that it isn’t makes his heartbeat go faster. What the fuck. 

Grace comes to him, her steps slow as she hovers to his right. 

“Not sitting down then?” Rook tries for humorous, but his voice wavers a little. She saw it too. There’s no point in this. 

“I won’t tell anyone,” she says, and her voice is the softest and most understanding Rook has ever heard it. 

Fuck. This isn’t how it was supposed to go. No one was supposed to know about him and Joseph, and Joseph certainly wasn’t supposed to, to be fucking _broadcasting_ it. 

Even if Grace tells no one, soon a lot of people will just _know_. That thought, too, makes Rook’s heartbeat go fast and uneasy in his chest. 

When Grace speaks up again, it’s like nothing has happened. “Wanna get another beer?” 

Rook does. 

  
  


One beer turns into two, then three and then Rook is drunkedy drunk drunk, lying down in the middle of a field next to a bale of hay. Boomer is sitting next to him and whining at him softly from time to time. 

“Yeah, buddy, I’m in trrrrrouble!” Rook agrees, and crap, he has to pee again. 

He goes to stand, swaying on his feet. It’s almost as bad as his experience at the Testy Festy. That was fun. They should have another one soon, Rook had fun chasing after bulls. Not so much fun the bulls chasing him though, heh. 

Rook pees unevenly in the grass, thankfully no one around to judge him but Boomer. When he goes to sit down again, stumbling over to another bale of hay and leaning on it, Rook sighs. 

“So whaat do you think,” he stops to hiccup a little, frowning. “What do ya think I should doo now?” 

Boomer, unsurprisingly, has no advice to offer him.

So Rook decides to radio Joseph instead. To hell with being careful! Joseph isn’t being careful, why should Rook? 

“Aare you there? I knowww you aaare,” he slurs into his radio, cursing and calling for Joseph until he discovers he’s not even pressing the button down. 

Fuck it. Rook tosses the radio away and lies down again. He’ll just go to Joseph in an hour. 

Rook passes out whilst still fully intent to set an alarm. 

The hangover he has for the entirety of the next day makes him unable to even think about confronting Joseph. 

  
  


~

  
  


Another week passes with no opportunity to catch Joseph alone. Rook should know, he spends the majority of it driving a boat past Joseph’s compound or doing recon through his binoculars from Dutch’s island. Like a stalker.

Finally, the constant stream of peggies and Joseph’s siblings coming to visit him appears to dwindle enough. Rook waits out John, the last one to leave for the day, and radios Joseph. 

“I’m on Dutch’s island, I will wait for you next to Faith’s shrine,” he starts. Then before Joseph has a chance to respond, and for Rook to lose his nerve, he adds “Just come.” 

Rook puts the radio in its little holster and makes his way to the shrine, chasing away any misguided peggies who dare try and come to it again. He thinks he hears one of them call him ‘Joseph’s bitch’, but that may just be his mind playing tricks on him. 

He really hopes he won’t lose it completely before Joseph comes. 

  
  


It takes almost two hours for Joseph to arrive, during which Rook has managed to come up with about half a dozen speeches. About half of those are angry, the rest is just a mindless tirade of questions. 

But when Rook sees Joseph climb up the hill to him, everything fades away. 

Joseph’s steps are soft but there is no hesitation in them. And as he gets to Rook in bright light of day, Rook has the perfect view of his chest. Joseph is typically shirtless and barely a couple of feet from him, so Rook can really see it now on Joseph’s left peck. 

There, right above the edge of the crown, above Joseph’s _heart_ , is a rook chess piece. 

Rook stares, mesmerized, lost, awestruck. 

He has never felt more scared than he does in this moment. 

And with words refusing to form, the only thing Rook can do is gather Joseph in his arms and kiss him senseless. He doesn’t know how long the kiss lasts - a minute, a year, a decade. When they finally stop kissing, they’re both breathless and warm against each other.

Rook rests their foreheads together, his arms sliding around Joseph’s waist. 

“Why?” he asks. It’s the only real question plaguing his mind for the past two weeks. 

“You are perfect for me, Rook. We are meant to walk through Eden’s gate together,” Joseph’s voice is ever so soft, sounding so convinced as he says it. 

Rook thinks back on all the times Joseph has pulled him in like this. Remembers the beginning, when there was no sex involved, when it was just their foreheads touching. Has it been this way from the very start? Was it always going to end with Rook’s mark on Joseph’s heart?

“What about…” everything, Rook wants to say. There are so many variables to consider, so many people. They can’t just… be together in the open, like they’re not on the opposite sides of a war. “We can’t be together like this,” Rook tries. 

“And yet, we are,” Joseph whispers against his lips. The gentle finality in his voice wipes away the last of Rook’s protests. 

They’re still sharing a breath, Joseph is pliant but steady in Rook’s arms. 

Fuck. Rook’s really gone for him now.


End file.
